how long will the worms survive? Do you have to keep them cool? Thanks for the help, I'm a saltwater guy trying to get into bluegill fishing. I have a 1 year old and live in SA so I need to figure this out before he is able to fish with me.

I think keeping them cool would keep the alive the longest (days, maybe weeks). Just for the outing though I would think just carrying the box o worms along would be sufficient, unless the box just lays in the sun.

If you keep Canadian nightcrawlers at 40 degrees or so they will live for weeks.

At the lake they live for a few hours if the temperature is below 80 degrees. Above that the whole container will die in a few minutes. I just bought a Frabill Crawler Can to keep them alive in the 100 degree heat we are experiencing in North Texas. It is a double ended thermos. You put ice in one end and the worms in the other.I have high hopes for it.

I think keeping them cool would keep the alive the longest (days, maybe weeks). Just for the outing though I would think just carrying the box o worms along would be sufficient, unless the box just lays in the sun.

I keep my worms in a playmate ice chest covered with a Coleman Ice Cube. Worms stay fresh all day. When I am not fishing I simply keep them in the refrigerator.

I tend to use #8 short shank, wide gap hooks for my Gulp! Alive! presentations. I will sometimes use a #10 or even #12 when the rig/bait or conditions demand. I really like Gammy finesse wide gaps, but it's rare to find them in the size I'm looking for. Not a huge fan of their Octopus hook. I've come around to really like Owner Mosquito hooks. They come sharp on a more consistent level and have great pivot. I also like to get hooks in bulk unless I'm just trying them out and I can get the Owners in bulk fairly easily.

I use these for bait and the Gulp! products. BTW, A lot of times I catch just as many fish on the Gulp! side by side as those who fish with bait. Bait tends to do a little better with smaller bait stealers, but the Gulp! Tends to filter thru them and catch more quality fish. I can even catch the bait thieves if I switch from minnow imitations to smaller maggots or larvae imitations. In my experience, there is little need to fish bait when the bite is on. Even when the bite is off a bit, I still fish lures. It's a confidence thing with most anglers.

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Bless the Lord, O my soul,and all that is within me,bless His Holy Name!

Although I do like Gulp Alive products, we use half a redworm on #6 Aberdeen 90% of the time. That said, we have caught numerous big sunnies on nightcrawlers and 2/0 octopus hooks meant for other larger species. Because we target largemouth, cats, gar and bowfin with small sunnies for bait, the smaller presentation will always be our "go to".

Saw a show a few days ago by a fellow Coloradan, Chad La Chance, who is a Gulp Minnow fanatic, that may change the way we chase big sunnies. He learned a technique from a big-time crappie guy on Bull Shoals, but claims it is incredibly effective for all species... including sunfish.

So I fished the Medina River in Bandera and did not do well with the gulp worms, just caught one small bluegill but I never fished on the bottom I only used a cork. Maybe I should try live worms with a split shot on the bottom ? This was also early afternoon like 1-4pm. Any suggestions?

First thing is that you have to be where fish are to catch fish. No kind of bait will work unless you are on them. Keep moving around until you find them. One hint is they like weedy or grassy cover. If you fish exactly like Banker and Smithaven said, and you find them, you will catch them. Don't forget to keep the worms cold. If you don't, they will almost melt, leaving nothing in your carton except dirty, black worm poop and worm skin. After you learn to find fish and catch them, you can start experimenting with artificial baits. Something like a plastic cricket or a tiny bubble belly type plastic minnow on a 1/16 oz. jig head, or a 1/16 oz. beetlespin, presented properly, will usually catch them. This is just from my perspective.

I could see the perch cuz the water was real clear but only the little ones would peck at the worm, the big ones wouldn't bite. Maybe they could see me to ! I was kind of standing over them at the edge of the bank looking down.

Yeah, if you can see them, you better believe they can see you. A lot of times the best thing you can do when you can see the fish and they aren't willing to bite is to leave them be for a while. When you do come back, stay a long cast away, keep your shadow off of them and work the edges of the productive area with a finesse presentation.

BTW, if you are a novice with artificials, start out with what ever rig you feel confident in with whatever bait you feel confident with. Once the bite is on and you are fairly confident that you have them patterned, switch to the artificials and build up your confidence. Believe me, not having to keep bait alive and/or fresh is a relief.

_________________________
Bless the Lord, O my soul,and all that is within me,bless His Holy Name!

another tip... I was out yesterday helping my brother in law (novice) bass fish.. I wanted HIM to catch the bass, so I set out a kids rod and rigged it like a drop shop with a mosquito hook, long shank and a chunk of earth worm with the weight about 8 inches below the hook.

I caught of a ton of small shellcrakers and bluegill just letting this rod drag behind us as we floated. I just tucked it under my leg and let it drag... we were mostly moving at the speed the wind would push my small pond boat.

Point is, maybe try a small drop shot set up, this is the first time I have, and was pleased with the results.